thnx for answering all :-) and thnx for the welcome.

So I assume the howler-like blade is still coming out then? Any idea when?

EDIT: oh yes, i saw that bowie but that isnt my kind of blade :-) I allready have a ratweiler and i would love to have a howler next to it.

I guess I should add that I like both the Battle Rat and the Camp Tramp, but I feel very strongly that neither knife is a "do-it-all" knife.

To me, both of these knives need a good 4" or so bladed companion knife. The SS4 or Bog Dog or Howler would be Awesome paired with either.

The Battle Rat is a much better chopper - NO question, but of the things I do with my knife in the field and around camp, the CT is more versatile "for me". And the Battle Rat (although more effecient and more fun to chop with) is larger than I need.
If chopping up stuff is one of your primary concerns, get the Battle Rat (or an axe....).

Personally, I feel that a good "Duo" will/can do about 95%-99% of everything you need and do what's needed fairly well.

(IMO) - There are a lot of great knives out there that try to do it all, but any one knife that tries to do it all is not going to do many things great.

.

I almost completely agree with you, and I think that I am probably the only person out there claiming that the Battle Rat is a do it all knife. It is true that the majority of work that I do with the BR is chopping, limbing trees, thinning brush and the like, but I have also used it for whittling, cutting up meat and vegetables in the kitchen and even slicing tomatoes. Thus far I have not tried to use it to create watermelon art.

While it is true that for each one of these tasks a better tool can be found, the BR does all of them well enough that I can get by without those other tools most of the time.

I do not have any argument with any one who prefers one knife above another, to each his own. But if I had to restrict myself to only one knife, mine would be a Battle Rat.

but when are the howler like blades coming?

bld522, rich, KnifeGuy..
hmm.. now y'all got me thinking.. Camp Tramp vs Battle Rat ..maybe I should buy BOTH! then later sell the one i don't like.

Dangit..

there were 2 Battle Rats on Ebay i was gonna try sniping.. but idiots are bidding it up!
the black/tan's at $161
the D Guard's at $194

on Exchange i've seen..
Battle Rats for ~$200
Camp Tramps for ~$250

..Dog Father! i Need you...!

hmm.. what would Andy Wayne do.. ?

Not sure what Andy would do but after reading about the truck wreck I'm thinking bowie...

yep.. i read the truck wreck yesterday.. got me thinking too..
it's not hard to do.
happened to me in high school, driving too fast on a dirt road, quick turn banked the wrong way.. rolled car (1 slow roll), landed upside down, roof didn't collapse though.. ::shivers::

Ouch! So far I've never turned a car over... I did rip a wheel off once though at about 50 mph!

woa.. broken wheel stud? hit something on the street? tire blow-out?
now something like that could cause a nice spin-out.. and maybe a roll.. if done just right.

I flipped a van end over end down a mountain in BC. God looks after drunks and imbiciles and that day I was both so he took extra good care of me.

Is Andy OK? I have not heard anything and hope he is all right!
We are having an insane blizzard here in saskatchawan with most of the highways shut down and it takes some real bad weather to even notice a difference.
I took a few pics of the 4 foot drifts in my driveway I will post later.

i hear that.

4' wow.
yep.. lived in snow country for 10 yrs.. been there, done that, got the t-shirt.
stay warm man <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />